City on a Moving Hill
by Tsukikine
Summary: When Rhodes Island appeared out of nowhere on Remnant, it drew the attention of two forces that had long been fighting a war between good and evil. There was no way it was going to stay out of the fray. Helping the people of Remnant was a worthwhile goal, and discrimination was nothing new to the operators of Rhodes Island. Arknights.
1. Paper Ark 1

**So.**

**Sorry to anyone who expected me to update Date a Fate. You see, I was on youtube the other day when I saw this ad...**

**And before I knew it, I was sucked into Terra, the world of Arknights. It's a great game, and I'm absolutely loving it. If I had to complain about something... it would be that I don't get to play it enough. Seriously. The game has an energy system (except AP is called sanity instead), so I literally cannot play it enough. I created a second account just to play Arknights more.**

**Needless to say, Arknights has taken over my free time.**

**That said, while I was playing, I couldn't help but notice a ton of interesting parallels between Arknights and RWBY. For instance, Originium is a wonder material, just as Dust is. Both worlds have their technology powered by said wonder material. And both worlds have humans and half-humans.**

**I just really want to explore what it would be like for those worlds to meet. As for why Rhodes Island is on Remnant... I'll reveal that eventually.**

**Not all operators introduced here will get focus. It's more to let you guys know who may potentially show up, and who's stationed where. This fic will probably only focus on the Vale teams.**

**For those who don't play arknights, I recommend searching up the names of the operators just to get an idea of their appearance. You might want to wait until you have an idea of who'll be the main characters, though, since a lot of operators got mentioned in this chapter.**

* * *

Atlas. Vacuo. Mistral. Vale.

The names of the four kingdoms were well known throughout the land of Remnant. Bastions against the forces of evil, they had stood strong and united against the threat that loomed over humanity and faunus alike.

They stood against the creatures of Grimm. Dark, corrupted mockeries of regular animals, the Grimm sought only destruction, killing and destroying village after village. In a world where humans and faunus were surviving by a thread, it was difficult to find someplace truly safe.

The four kingdoms had provided that safety for centuries. Each kingdom trained experienced huntsmen and huntress, elite fighters that could match Grimm with the use of Aura - the power of the soul - and Dust, nature's wrath in crystalline form.

Yet despite the patrols of the huntsmen and huntresses, the land outside the kingdoms remained a dangerous and hostile place. Grimm existed on land, in the sky, and at sea. Attacks could come from anywhere. Even a single Grimm, if strong enough, could wipe out an entire village. Towns and villages vanished off the face of the map all the time.

There had only been four kingdoms for as long as anyone remembered. No one believed any town could last long enough and grow large enough to become a fifth kingdom. If anywhere was to become a fifth kingdom, it should have been Menagerie, an island of faunus that had survived for 80 years.

It wasn't.

The fifth and newest kingdom was the moving city of Rhodes Island.

Placed upon massive shifting platforms, the entire city was mobile. One could never know the exact location of Rhodes Island, as it constantly moved across the map to avoid large packs of Grimm. Perhaps that was why it had survived.

"Yet, that too is puzzling."

Ozpin was the headmaster of Beacon Academy, the huntsman academy of Vale. Appearing to be a middle-aged man with grey hair and spectacles, he was respected by even the other headmasters. Leaning on his desk was a cane - his weapon, the Long Memory.

Sitting before him was the source of his current deliberations. A letter.

It was from Rhodes Island.

Much of it was pleasantries, clearly an attempt to establish a positive relationship. He could not fault the letter writer, who only referred to herself as Amiya, for that. Rhodes Island was a new kingdom, and it needed all the allies it could get.

No, it was an offer located towards the end of the letter. An offer to open an exchange program for huntsmen- and huntresses-in-training to visit Rhodes Island, and for the 'operators' - for Rhodes Island called their huntsmen and huntresses 'operators' - of Rhodes Island to visit Vale, at least until the Vytal Festival began in a few months. From his contacts in the other kingdoms, they had all received similar offers.

Ozpin would have liked to accept the offer, but there were many things about Rhodes Island that didn't match up. So he had called two of his closest advisors to discuss the issue.

"Of course," Qrow grumbled. Qrow was one of Ozpin's most trusted friends, and the headmaster often relied on Qrow to perform various jobs. It was only natural that the scraggly huntsman was one of the people Ozpin turned to. "Atlas has always had the best technology, and even _they_ won't just up and put their kingdom on wheels. How'd some random village manage it?"

"To be fair," Glynda spoke up from her position to Ozpin's right, "Mobile platforms do form naturally when gravity dust forms under the ground."

Glynda was another member of his trusted circle and the headmistress of Beacon Academy. She was honestly the more active of the two of them in maintaining order in the school.

Only Glynda and Qrow were in the room by Ozpin. He would have like to contact James, but that man was another headmaster, and had his own issues to attend to. That, and Ozpin didn't want to risk their communications being tapped into.

"But those things float," Qrow argued back, "Rhodes' stuff is literally on wheels!"

"Gravity dust would still make the task of placing buildings onto platforms much easier than it would initially seem, however," Glynda responded, "Though I agree it is strange that the entire city is mobile. Still, it is far from impossible."

"And where would they get that dust?" Qrow shot back.

"Perhaps they stumbled across a vein of it?" Glynda shrugged. "I am merely playing devil's advocate."

"Qrow, Ozpin interjected, gaining the attention of both of the two, "I sent you on a mission to investigate Rhodes Island. Before we start arguing, would you mind telling both Glynda and I what you found?"

Qrow backed away from Glynda. "Sure thing, Oz." He rummaged around in his pockets before pulling out a small device - a Scroll. He dropped it onto Ozpin's desk, and suddenly holographic images appeared before them - pictures of a kingdom the other two had yet to see for themselves. "The citizens," he started, "What do you notice?"

There was a pause, and then-

"Most of them are faunus." Glynda muttered. Indeed, for in every picture, nearly all of the people possessed animal traits of some kind.

"Got it right in one," Qrow confirmed, "I had to hunt for any humans, and whatever humans were there were all recent immigrants. Most of them refugees that Rhodes Island took in after the destruction of their villages."

"While strange that they would be nearly entirely faunus, there are a couple possible explanations for that," Ozpin mused, "Perhaps they started a village together due to discrimination, and only began to accept humans once they grew in size and status."

Qrow shrugged. "Sure, let's go with that. Anyways, Rhodes is taking in refugees wherever it goes. That's nice of them and all, but something else crops up then. I was listening around, and there don't seem to be any signs of the problems that always follow rapid growth. No housing issues, no sudden food shortage, nothing. It's as if-"

"It's as if the city was built to house more people than it actually has," Glynda finished, "Though that's not strange either. For a city on platforms, it must be difficult to expand its size once built. And as for the food, the entire city must be designed to be self-sustained. I can't imagine that they would rely on foraging food off of the land wherever they go, especially with how much people they must have to feed."

"Thanks, Glynda, for stealing what I was 'bout to say." Qrow reached behind him and pulled out a flask, gulping down some of the contents.

"Qrow," Ozpin sighed, "Please finish your report before drinking alcohol." For his friend was indeed an alcoholic.

Qrow shrugged, then capped the flask and stowed it away. "Yeah, yeah, alright. What else did I want to say?" His eyes wandered to the pictures floating between them, before they settled on one of a young rabbit faunus. "Ah, got it." He pointed to the young girl. "This little girl is the leader of Rhodes Island."

"What?" was Glynda's reaction, while Ozpin's brow furrowed. "This is no time for jokes, Qrow," Glynda scolded.

"Well, I wasn't joking," he retorted, "For some reason or another, that little girl is considered the leader of Rhodes Island. She's supposedly helped by two people, someone named Kalt'sit and another who was only referred to as 'Doctor,' but I didn't see either of them around while I was there."

"For such a young child to be thrust into such a position..."

"A child who is the same age as those walking through Beacon's halls, Glynda," Ozpin reminded her, "We have extraordinary children learning to be huntsmen and huntresses here at Beacon. It is a dangerous world out there, and people have an interesting habit of rising to the occasion."

"Whether you like it or not, the kid's the leader," Qrow continued, "Kiddo's name is Amiya, and she's a rabbit faunus. To be honest, she seems like some random naive kid, always talking about making the world a better place."

"...Like your niece, Qrow?" Ozpin asked, amused.

"Exactly like my niece, Oz."

"And yet she governs one of the five kingdoms. In fact, the city became a kingdom under her leadership. So, Qrow," Ozpin leaned forward, "Do you believe someone's pulling the strings behind the scenes?"

"Heck, yeah. Two advisors, both who avoid the public? Odds are high that at least one of them are one of _her _pawns. Salem."

The room seemed to grow darker at her name. Silence fell, punctuated only by the ticking of the gears suspended above them.

Finally, Ozpin broke the silence. Fingers crossed and glasses glinting, he asked, "Are you sure these advisors work for Salem?"

"No," Qrow admitted, "But like I said, the odds are high."

"We cannot act rashly. If the city is truly controlled by Salem, then every citizen in that city is a hostage," Glynda noted, "We cannot openly accuse them of anything, especially since we have no evidence."

"We'll accept their offer."

Both of them turned to him in surprise. Neither had expected Ozpin to reach a decision so soon.

"Sir?" Glynda asked tentatively, one eyebrow raised, "Why?" Her voice was purely curious, without a single hint of offense that he made the decision so abruptly without their input.

It was one of the qualities he liked about her. She didn't leap to conclusions.

"The biggest problem with Rhodes Island is that it is an unknown," Ozpin stated, "If we send a team or two to Rhodes Island, we can also argue that they should be accompanied by one of our huntsmen. They could find information from the inside out."

"We'd be inviting them into Beacon as well," Glynda pointed out.

"Yeah, this could be an attempt by Salem to do anything," Qrow agreed, "Sabotage the CCT, gather information from us, find the location of the maidens, whatever! Especially the maidens, seeing as fall was just recently stripped of half of her powers."

"It would be very difficult to do any of those tasks," Ozpin noted, "Considering they'd be surrounded by their peers all the time, and that we'd be on the lookout for any suspicious activities from them. It would be worth the risk. We can verify our concerns about Rhodes Island. If Salem is truly in control, then having teams there puts us in a position to fight for the city. If not, then no harm done. Either way, we cannot allow the potential fall of a fifth kingdom."

"Sure, that sounds good and all, but who's going with the brats?"

Ozpin and Glynda turned to face Qrow as one. By his widening eyes, he knew what was coming.

"Oh-"

"Qrow," Ozpin began, "Let me preface this by saying that you are a valued member of this circle, and the work you do-"

Beside him, Glynda let out a sound that seemed suspiciously like a stifled laugh.

* * *

A reptilian face peered down at a small figure. Its shadow blotted out the light, but the figure took no notice, locked in deep sleep.

Crushing jaws approached the prone figure-

"IT'S TIME TO WAKE UP, DURIN!"

Durin snapped awake so fast that her little head smacked straight into the snout of the being standing above her, who was now chortling with laughter. She pouted. "Meanie... Don't do that... again, Rangers," she slurred, head already beginning to wobble back and forth as she began to slip into dreamland once again.

Unfortunately for her, a finger then flicked her awake again.

"Owie... Yato..."

The other two members of her team, Yato and Noir, stood behind Rangers. While Yato stood silent and straight like a soldier, black horns protruding out of her hair, Noir chuckled from behind a mask along with Rangers at his latest prank.

"Now, now, little one. We are here." Rangers nodded out the window of the airship - a bullhead, they were called - they were on as it showed a rapidly approaching sprawl of buildings. "We'll be in Vacuo before you-"

Durin's head hit his arm as she fell asleep again.

Rangers sighed.

"Well, you know how Durin is," Noir spoke up, spinning a shield on the tip of one of his fingers, "We'll just wake her up again once we're there."

"She could at the very least stay awake more," Rangers complained, "When it comes to troublesome teammates, she's barely better than Ifrit."

"Speaking of Ifrit," Noir said, "I wonder how the other Vacuo team is doing? After all, they got Ifrit, resident nuclear bomb."

"Just be glad that we got a separate airship."

A single finger tapped him on the shoulder, and when he turned, he found Yato silently pointing to another window - one that gave a clear view of an airship on fire as it plummeted to the ground. Already, people where gathering on that side of the bullhead, pointing and and whispering in worry.

The operators of Rhodes Island had a feeling they already knew what had happened.

"Poor Silence." Noir murmured.

"Poor Ptilopsis," Rangers added.

"...Mayer." Came Yato's quiet agreement.

* * *

Istina flipped another page of her book.

She ignored the absolute chaos that was Gummy trying to cook on the floor with a fire crystal while Zima tried to stop her. She ignored Beehunter picking fights with just about everyone who looked at her funny.

She even ignored Cliffheart's attempts to use her ropes and hooks to snag Matterhorn's shield as he was getting water, while Courier frantically tried to get her to stop.

The only person she didn't ignore was the girl sitting next to her. And that was because she was sleeping on her shoulder.

She dearly hoped Pramanix woke up soon. She had never been a physically fit person, and her shoulder was getting sore.

* * *

Nearl leaned back in her seat and closed her eyes as she listened to the hum of the bullhead's engines. Beside her were Nightingale and Shining, people who had been her friends since even before Rhodes Island.

"This is nice." Nightingale's voice. Nearl opened her eyes.

Yes, it was nice to be working with them again.

"Liz," for that was Nightingale's true name - 'Nightingale' was but a codename, "How are your arms?" Nearl asked.

Nightingale rotated a wrist. Then the other. Then she began to stretch her arms, wincing a little. "Sore. They're still sore. But..."

"At least you can move your arms freely," Shining murmured, "We were worried that you may never recover from your Oripathy."

Nightingale gave a small, shy smile.

While the three of them were content to speak calmly and quietly, however, it was a different manner for the operators on the opposite side of the bullhead.

"...And I told you, just because I'm stunned doesn't mean you can draw whiskers on my face!" Liskarm complained.

"I'm training you to be more aware of your surroundings," Franka whined.

"Sure, and I'll 'train' you to be more aware when you're sleeping!"

Beside them were Vanilla and Jessica, who exchanged worried looks.

"Should we stop them?" Vanilla asked, the horned girl turning to Jessica.

Jessica shook her head, her cat ears pinning themselves to her head.

* * *

Texas didn't understand.

Exusiai had wings. She had _wings_. She was one of the Sankta, with wings of light and a halo. She was a literal angel.

Said angel was currently throwing up in a trash can due to airsickness.

Ridiculous. Absolutely ridiculous.

Texas patted Exusiai on the back. She was her partner, after all, even if Exusiai was often far too loud and spoke too much for her liking.

"Shouldn't have eaten those apple pies," was Texas' comment. Exusiai's response was to give her a half-hearted frown before throwing up again.

"Tex~as!" rang out another voice.

One of Texas' wolf ears twitched in annoyance.

Behind her was Lappland, who was reaching out towards Texas in a gesture vaguely reminiscent of a hug. Fortunately, she was restrained by another wolf-girl, Sora.

"Miss Texas said that you have to leave her alone!"

"No! Lemme go!"

"No! I won't let you disturb Texas!"

Texas was quite grateful for the last member of their squad. Even though Sora had never held a weapon before - she had been an idol before joining Rhodes Island - Texas was glad there was at least _someone _to keep Lappland on a leash.

Texas' eyes drifted to the other Rhodes Island team-

Huh.

The four operators of the other Rhodes Island team on the bullhead with them were mostly quiet. Frostleaf had her eyes closed, but with her headphones on, it was clear she was listening to music. Meteorite was examining some files. Angelina and Cuora were talking in hushed tones about what school would be like.

...How Texas wished she had a normal team, instead of an airsick angel, armed psychopath, and idol singer.


	2. Paper Ark 2

**Ugh, another short chapter. I'm aiming for 5k words per chapter. Hey, at least this one is closer!**

**W****hile many operators will appear, not all of them will show up in the story.**

**Yeah, I know Sora likes to use illusions to hide that she's a cautus (rabbit-girl). But since she always uses an illusion when she's in public, she'll usually be described as a wolf-girl.**

**While Saria _is _in this fic, the reason she wasn't put on the Rhine Lab team was because of her poor relationship with Silence. I personally would have preferred putting Saria in over Mayer, but plot-wise it makes sense that Rhodes would try to keep Saria and Silence separate.**

**Some operators were intended to be teachers. Others would be students, and a teacher could be on a team with a student. It was due to the difference in the learning systems Rhodes Island (apprentice-style) and the kingdoms (classroom-style) use. Unfortunately, now you'll have to wait to see who's a teacher and what subjects Rhodes Island will teach.**

**When I began to write the story out, I realized there were two points I could start at - with Rhodes Island just arriving in Remnant, or just after Rhodes Island declared itself a kingdom. I initially chose the latter, because this allows me to introduce the RWBY cast earlier. I didn't want people coming to this fic from the RWBY side to be bored by a ton of unfamiliar characters for the first bajillion chapters, so I chose a point where I could bring in characters from both franchises earlier and left the other potential starting point open to be a prequel, to be written if this was popular enough or enough people asked for it.**

**Now that I've thought this story out a bit more though, I've realized that I really do need to give the background to Rhodes Island's presence on Remnant. So, no prequel. That arc will be incorporated into this fic. To help out people coming to this fic from the RWBY side, I'll instead be including a section called "Rhodes Island Files" at the bottom, with information about various operators and details about the world of Arknights, plus miscellaneous details I chose to add to further flesh out the Arknights world. I've also changed the title and description to match this new direction I'll be taking this fic in.**

**With that said, let's turn the clock back a bit...**

* * *

**1 year earlier**

"Beep beep! Coming through!"

It was with chaos and fanfare that the enormous machine made its way through the Rhodes Island loading deck and into the hangar. While Texas calmly inputted instructions into the moving platform carrying the machine, Exusiai ran forward, calling out to anyone in the way. Operators scrambled out of the way of the massive monstrosity.

The machine itself was shaped like an enormous cannon with a giant scope attached to the side of it. Stretching at a height of around 12 meters, it towered over the various vehicles that littered the deck. As it approached the hangar doors, there was a pause and then a loud clanking sound as the barrel lowered, pointing horizontally.

Amiya watched the proceedings through a window located on the second floor of Rhodes Island with a clipboard in her hands. She wore a jacket, a white blouse, and a skirt, and as a cautus, possessed a set of rabbit ears. Despite her young appearance, she was the leader of Rhodes Island. While everyone hustled around the hangar, she stood in the relative calm of an observation room.

"Is there a reason you're having us store something that looks like it could be a weapon of mass destruction?" A voice from her left reminded her that she was not alone, and she turned to face the speaker.

The Doctor, as everyone called him, was dressed in the same uniform as always. Between the long pants, hooded coat, and metal mask, there was nothing that revealed what the person inside the clothes looked like. The other operators liked to joke that perhaps under the clothes, the Doctor was a woman, though the rumor was neither confirmed nor denied.

"We could hardly leave it in Lungmen while a hostile force tramps around within the city," Ch'en answered from Amiya's right. Strict and efficient, the leader of the Lungmen Police Department continued to watch the cannon look-alike with her hands clasped behind her back. Dressed in a white collared shirt with a jacket and shorts, her casual-seeming attire failed to hide the stern air she exuded. Two horns poked out of her blue hair, and as always, strapped to her hip was a pair of swords.

"And so you chose a pharmaceutical company to house said weapon."

"We both know you are far more than just a pharmaceutical company," Ch'en replied.

"Doctor," Amiya turned fully towards him and grabbed a hold of one of his sleeves with both hands as she looked up into his face, "Please, Ch'en and Lungmen are our allies. We shouldn't be antagonizing them."

"We share common enemies, Doctor," Ch'en agreed, "Lungmen trusts Rhodes Island to keep the machine safe until Lungmen is capable of taking is off your hands again."

Suddenly, there was a loud crash, and all three of them looked out the window. The platform carrying the machine was apparently unable to handle its weight, and one of the wheels had broken. As they watched, two operators - Popukar and Shaw - rushed over to the damaged wheel and lifted up the platform while a robot replaced the wheel. A little farther away, a third operator - Saria - raised her hand, and a soft glow covered the two heavy-lifters.

Popukar and Shaw were strong for their size, but even their arms would give out if Saria wasn't strengthening their bones with her own abilities. Amiya smiled. That display was representative of what Rhodes Island was - they were a ragtag bunch of individuals that trusted and relied on one another. If it weren't for the various armbands and ribbons with the Rhodes Island logo that many of the operators wore, one would never realize they worked for the same group.

"Don't worry," Amiya told her, "Your Rift Reactor will be safe with us." And then, after a pause, "What does it do, exactly?"

Ch'en shrugged. "We don't know. It was extracted from the ruins of Chernobog. From what documents we were able to retrieve, it was intended to be a weapon to 'wipe cities off the map,' though it never saw use because the scientists could never get it to reliably activate. The Lungmen Science Department were looking into it, but, as you know, their labs were damaged and taken over, and the Reactor had to be relocated. Never once has it reacted to anything while in our possession."

Suddenly the room shook. In an instant, Ch'en had her fingers running along the hilt of one of her swords as her eyes darted across the hangar, looking for anything out of place. "What is it?" she asked, "Is Rhodes Island under attack?"

Amiya checked her watch, then shook her head. "No, we're just turning. Rhodes Island's Catastrophe Messengers detected a Catastrophe happening an day's travel north from here. It'll move downwards and be in this area in a few hours, so I scheduled Rhodes Island to turn at this time in order to avoid it."

Ch'en relaxed her grip on her weapons. "If it's a Catastrophe, then that's fine." Her eyes continued to wander the room below them. "I had heard that Rhodes Island is still often under attack."

"We haven't really been bothered that much lately," Amiya admitted, "Besides, with today being the day the Rift Reactor is being moved into Rhodes Island _and _Pramanix visiting her sister, we called in BlackSteel International and Penguin Logistics. Security is higher than ever."

"In that case, I'll be taking my leave. I have plenty of work waiting for me." With that, Ch'en headed for the door.

"Do you know the way back?" the Doctor asked, having been quiet for some time now.

Ch'en paused at the doorway. "Yes, no need to worry. I'll go pick up Hoshiguma and Swire, and then we'll be-"

The entire building shook this time and the lights began to flicker. Amiya and the Doctor stumbled a few steps forward before they caught themselves, while Ch'en grabbed onto the door frame.

"I doubt that was due to turning," she commented.

"It isn't," Amiya stated the obvious.

"The Reactor," the Doctor said, drawing their attention to the events unfolding beyond the window.

The previously inert machine had come to life. Rings along its barrel spun and glowed, and lines resembling circuits lit up. Then the entire barrel began to spin like a machine gun ready to fire, as the stand upon which the cannon-shaped cylinder gave off a loud hum. Even as the lights flickered, the glow of the Rift Reactor was constant. And then, something began to glow from within the barrel.

It was someone in the crowd below that first broke everyone out of the trance. They pointed to the barrel and yelled something, and instantly everyone was running for cover.

"Doctor!" Amiya tackled him to the ground just as there was a flash of light, and then silence.

* * *

"Ugh..."

The Doctor cracked an eye open, only to shut it immediately when something bright entered his vision. He tried again, this time allowing his eyes to open slowly.

The first thing he saw was the ceiling light that had blinded him seconds ago. Then he realized he was in a bed - a hospital bed, if the white sheets and curtains were anything to go by. Sitting on a table beside him was his mask - from the pressure he could feel around his forehead, it had been removed to apply a bandage. Slumped over his sheets was Amiya in a chair, fast asleep.

He must have been knocked out in the explosion and brought to Rhodes Island's medical wing. Or rather, one of its many medical wings. Amiya must have been worried about him.

Due to amnesia, he couldn't remember the first time the two of them had ever met. All he knew was that when he first woke up from a cryogenic sleep, she had been the first face to greet him. When his fingers were still stiff and his hands still numb, she had been the one to offer her warm hand. This little girl had been with him since the beginning, hadn't she?

Quietly, he raised a hand and softly patted the sleeping girl on the head, between her rabbit ears. He froze when she moved slightly, but then relaxed when she simply snuggled closer. Once again, he reached out -

He paused, and removed his gloves first, revealing thin fingers that were pale from lack of exposure to the sun. With the fabric removed, he once again reached out and placed his hand on her head again. She let out a murmur of contentment. Her hair was soft to the touch.

Whichever medic was currently on duty would probably ask to give him a quick look-over, something that Amiya didn't really need to be there for. Amiya worked herself too hard. She could use the rest.

He slowly retracted his hand and slipped out of the bed, careful not to disturb the sleeping girl. Fortunately, whoever treated him had left him in most of his clothes, so all he had to do was slip on his shoes and don his mask once more, and the Doctor of Rhodes Island was back.

Exiting the ward, he found the room empty, but one of the doors leading to the offices of the medics was open, and there was the soft scratchy sound of someone writing. He made his way over, and although the door was already open, rapped his knuckles softly on the door to get the occupant's attention.

Sitting behind an oak desk was a young girl, who couldn't possibly look older than 20. While the Doctor's skin was pale, her's was pure white, accompanied with equally white hair. The only parts of her face with color were her eyes, which were a vibrant blood-red. Dressed in a long white shirt and black tights, her attire did little to add color to her monochrome appearance. On her chair was a black, sleeveless jacket. A hairband with a small red cross did its best to keep her hair out of her eyes, and on her left arm was an armband with a red cross, signifying her occupation as a medic.

Of course, the Doctor couldn't help but recognize the administrator of the Rhodes Island Blood Bank, Warfarin. Though they had not worked together often as researchers, Warfarin had come under his command in combat as a medical operator several times. She was also somewhat infamous for her tendency to prioritize science above all, kidnapping operators to 'assist' her in her experiments.

At his knocking, the girl looked up from the papers she was writing. "Doctor?!" She immediately stood and rounded the table. "You're up? Quick, I have to give you an examination to make sure you're cleared of any injuries." She exited the room and soon returned with a cart with several tools on it.

"Alright, alright, there's no need to push," the Doctor protested as Warfarin tried to make him sit in one of the chairs by her desk. Unfortunately for her, her small size and slender arms meant that she would was largely unsuccessful until the Doctor sat down of his own volition. She pouted but began the examination.

As she took his blood pressure, the Doctor decided to ask a question. "What happened while I was unconscious?" he asked, "Does anyone know what caused the Reactor to activate?"

Warfarin nodded. "Some of the Rhodes Island researchers have already started looking into the matter. Unfortunately, whatever the Reactor did, it affected the entire complex. Several sections of Rhodes Island are damaged, including the wheels that allowed Rhodes Island to move, so Amiya has declared that Rhodes Island is under lock-down and that most of our resources go to tending anyone that was injured and repairing what we can. The Reactor itself was damaged, but is nevertheless under constant watch for any activity. There's more, of course, but I think she wants to tell you herself."

"I do."

The Doctor turned in his seat to find Amiya standing in the doorway. Her hair was somewhat messy and her clothes ruffled, and she was still rubbing her eyes, but she was clearly awake. So much for not bothering her.

Warfarin took his distracted state as an opportunity to stick a thermometer in his mouth.

"Doctor," Amiya said, "there's a lot we have to talk about."

"Go right ahead," Warfarin said as she removed the thermometer from his mouth, "I'll just be doing my own thing."

Amiya blinked, then shook her head and continued. "Right. Um, to begin with, how much has Warfarin told you?"

"Just about how Rhodes Island was damaged and our mobility is ruined," the Doctor answered, "And that you've ordered a complex-wide lockdown."

"Yes, well," Amiya drew closer, but seeing as the only unoccupied seat was Warfarin's, she instead chose to sit on the desk, "It's true that Rhodes Island was damaged, but not only that, the Rift Reactor also seems to have transported us somewhere else. Our Catastrophe Messengers are doing their best to identify our location but haven't been successful. There also seem to be hostile creatures with bone masks outside our walls, so I ordered the lockdown to keep the operators safe."

"I see... have you tried communicating with them?" he asked.

"We did," it was Warfarin who spoke, "Amiya, Ch'en, and I went to speak with the creatures, but they attacked us on sight. We were forced to kill a few when we retreated, and they've been circling Rhodes Island ever since."

"Did they talk back at all?" It was important to verify that the creatures were monsters and not intelligent beings.

"They growled at us, but didn't seem to communicate with each other at all. They bore a striking likeness to wolves," Amiya confirmed.

The Doctor took a moment to consider that information, before another concern entered his mind. "Speaking of Ch'en, where are the Lungmen operators? Are they still alright?" It had been Lungmen that had asked Rhodes Island to house the Rift Reactor, and he feared that whatever the Reactor had done, some might blame it on them.

"They're doing fine," Amiya answered, "They were just as shaken up by this incident as the rest of us, but they recovered pretty quickly. Hoshiguma and Ch'en are currently managing the repair efforts, and Swire is trying to get in contact with her family in Victoria. So far, no one seems to blame them for anything." It seems Amiya had similar concerns.

Good. There were no issues so far on that front.

Yet, Amiya frowned and continued. "About what Swire is doing - connection is very poor out here. We received _some _signal, but it isn't enough to connect to anyone outside of Rhodes Island."

"But there's _some_ connection. Are you sure?"

"Yes. Rhodes Island's central computer is still functioning, and it still receives some transmissions," Amiya said, "But they're too weak to make out anything other than unintelligible words."

"It's still something. At least we know there are people out there - people close enough that we're receiving their transmissions."

Amiya nodded to that. "True, but we don't know if they're friendly. And Dr. Kal'tsit was in Lungmen when the Reactor activated, so she isn't available until we find a way back."

That was indeed bad. Dr. Kal'tsit had been the one to handle most negotiating with foreign entities, so to have their number one diplomat gone...

"I see. We still have enough Originium to keep Rhodes Island running, right?" Originium was a material that powered all of their technology. If they ran out, everything would shut down.

"We have enough for about two weeks, but our sensors haven't detected any Originium nearby. There's a chance we won't be able to refill our stores," Amiya admitted, "That said, we did find several crystals that are very similar to Originium. With some modifications, we can change most of our devices to use the new crystals as a substitute. There are differences though, so we would need to study these crystals. And to do that, we'll need to retrieve some samples, which means we'll have to-"

"-go outside," the Doctor finished, "Where the creatures are lurking. We'd have to shut down most of Rhode Island while the changes are being made too, wouldn't we?"

Amiya nodded. The two sat in silence for a while, before the Doctor spoke up again, "As it is, we're sitting ducks, and a Catastrophe could wipe us out. The best course of action would be to repair our wheels, but I heard from Warfarin that we're already doing that, right?"

"Well..."

"Not exactly," Warfarin cut in, "We're doing internal repairs - things that can be done from inside Rhodes Island. Unfortunately, to repair the wheels, we'd need to go outside."

"So we'll have to take our chances with the locals," the Doctor sighed. He then stood from his seat and turned to the door. "Alright, I'll go form the squads that will head down-"

"Now wait a minute!" Warfarin yelped, "Sit down this instance!"

The Doctor blinked. "Warfarin, we have to-"

"Sit down and take that mask off!" she ordered, "I've been waiting patiently this whole time so as not to interrupt, but I need to check your bandage!"

Huh. He'd forgotten about the bandage wrapped around his forehead.

He took his seat again and removed the mask. Warfarin leaned forward and reached into his hood to remove the bandage-

And then froze.

"Um," Amiya said hesitantly, "Warfarin?"

Having leaned forward, Warfarin's face was right in front of the Doctor. Thus, he was the first to see the change that came over her expression. Her eyes became vacant, her breathing shallow, and all emotions drained from her face. Then her white cheeks began to flush, and a strange glint appeared in her eyes as she panted. Her veins became visible as her blood began to glow red. She opened her mouth, baring her teeth.

Including two sharp incisors - fangs.

"Your blood... it... it's... ah...

Oh, he realized. How could he forget?

Warfarin was a vampire. And although she had remarkable self-restraint, the Doctor's blood - and no one else's - had always been a weak spot for her. There must be some of his blood on the bandage.

It seemed they had all forgotten.

"Amiya-" his voice was all the signal Warfarin needed, and she lunged forward. Just as she did, however, the Doctor threw himself backwards, toppling the chair over and sending both of them to the ground. Warfarin immediately made another attempt at the Doctor's neck, only to be caught by writhing black lines that snaked through the air. The Doctor's eyes followed the lines to their source - Amiya. One of her hands were raised, each finger with a blue ring glittering in the office light, as strings emerged from a black diamond that hovered behind her. In an instant, Warfarin was forced back into her own seat, struggling throughout the process.

"Thanks," the Doctor gasped, raising a hand to his neck and rubbing where Warfarin would have bitten, had Amiya not stopped her, "I forgot-"

"No, it was my bad," Amiya protested, "It was me who bandaged you and brought you to this medical ward, forgetting Warfarin's condition. If anything, it's my fault."

"No, you had a lot on your mind," the Doctor argued, "You couldn't-"

Their blame-argument was interrupted by a growl from the resident vampire girl as she struggled against her bindings. He and Amiya shared a look. Amiya then approached her captive.

"Sorry, Warfarin. You're going to need to take a nap." Amiya raised a hand, and the growling ceased as Warfarin's eyes glazed over and then she fell into a peaceful sleep. "You'll be yourself again when you wake up." She released Warfarin, and the vampire slumped forward onto her desk.

True enough, the bloodthirst would probably disappear in ten minutes or so. All that would remain of the incident would be some mild embarrassment for Warfarin for losing control. And yet, Amiya still looked troubled over what she'd just done.

The Doctor patted her on the shoulder. "Don't worry. She'll be fine in a few minutes." He gestured towards the door. "Shall we go form a team?"

She gave a tentative smile. "Alright then. You form the team. I'll make the announcement."

* * *

As the last of the operators Amiya called filed into the reception room, the Doctor observed them from the side as they prepared for combat.

Lappland and Siege stood by the door, already prepared to leave. Understandable, considering all Siege needed was her hammer, while Lappland just needed her two swords. As always, Siege was dressed in her casual black shorts and jacket with a white shirt underneath, while Lappland was garbed in a black coat and shorts.

Magellan and Mayer talked and laughed as their respective robots greeted each other. The two were some of Rhodes Island's best mechanics and both looked the part, though in different ways. While Mayer's dress and jacket could only be interpreted as casual clothing, the robotic arms that emerged from the box attached to her back clearly showed where her talents lay. On the other hand, Magellan's clothing, a blend of a hazard suit mixed with a dress, was closer to lab attire and left only her face exposed.

The last two members of the team were Jessica and Meteorite. Both of them were designated as sniper operators. While both displayed a preference for dull colors, Jessica wore a black jacket and skirt while Meteorite instead had a grey sweater and black skirt. Their expressions were polar opposites - while Jessica bit her lip and looked constantly worried, Meteorite's gaze was calm and collected, one hand on the crossbow strapped to her side.

With the whole team present, the Doctor decided it was time to get started. "Hello everyone!" With that, he had everyone's attention. "You've all heard Amiya's announcement. At the moment, Rhodes Island is stuck. We will be doing what we can to repair the wheels. It will likely take us several operations." He paced back and forth. "The locals bear a resemblance to wolves, and seem to be hostile. If they attack, be prepared to fight back. Any questions?"

"May we use explosives?" Meteorite asked. Of course she'd ask, considering she primarily used explosive arrows.

"I would rather you didn't. We don't need Rhodes Island being further damaged," the Doctor answered, receiving a nod of acknowledgment from Meteorite, "Any others?"

When no one posed any, the Doctor nodded and walked over to the automatic doors that lead to the outside world. With the press of a button, they slid open. "Alright. Let's start."

* * *

_Rhodes Island Files_

_Catastrophe_

_A naturally occurring disaster. Catastrophes have plagued the land of Terra for centuries, and can take any form - a volcano eruption, an earthquake, a tornado, etc. What separates a Catastrophe from a regular disaster, however, is the presence of Originium (see Originium, pg. 3). While Originium is a precious resource, and Catastrophes are the only way it can be obtained, direct exposure can lead to a variety of health issues (see Oripathy, pg. 4)._

_Catastrophes are dangerous enough that large cities have become mobile. In an effort to escape the destruction of a Catastrophe, cities move from place to place. Of course, not all can afford to live in a mobile city, as space is limited. Some of these people are nomads, wanderers who travel along the road both to avoid Catastrophes and to seek better lives. Others, instead, choose to live in small villages, in areas where Catastrophes rarely strike._

_Fortunately, there are often signs of Catastrophes before they hit. Different Catastrophes have different signs, but they all share one: unnaturally high Originium concentration in the air preceding the Catastrophe. In order to predict Catastrophes in advance, some people choose to become Catastrophe Messengers._

_Catastrophe Messengers are many things. They are the ones to monitor the land, to forecast if a Catastrophe will hit. They are the ones to sound the alarm in the case of an impending Catastrophe. And after a Catastrophe hits, they are also the relief workers, rescuing anyone they come across - most of whom will have become Infected (see Oripathy, pg. 4)._


	3. Paper Ark 3

**I was planning on releasing this chapter and starting on the next chapter of Date a Fate last week, but I became sick and couldn't find the motivation to do so. At least I'm better now! *coughs violently***

**I intentionally tried to make the situation on Terra as vague as possible. The Arknights storyline is only just starting. I'm trying to avoid conflicting with canon as much as possible.**

**Operators from CN may appear, but they will likely be soon-to-be-released operators in global. The problem with doing CN operators is that I don't really have a good grasp of their personalities, since most of their voice lines and such still aren't translated. On a related note, I do not have all the operators in-game. It's a bit difficult to grasp the personality of operators that I don't have. I will generally try to stick to operators that I have an understanding of (this is the actual reason I chose Lappland over Croissant - I don't have Croissant). OC operators (yes, Rhodes has non-playable operators) may appear, but they will be the minority. Doesn't mean they can't play a part in the story, though! In fact, there's an OC in this very chapter. Kudos to whoever figures out where I got the inspiration for her from.**

**Dust is overall weaker than Originium. Even specific Dust such as ice Dust is weaker than Originium fueled ice arts. In addition, each type of Dust produces a limited number of effects, while Originium can be used to produce a wide variety of effects - some of which Dust is completely unable to replicate. A strong Originium caster/Infected like Talulah would curbstomp anyone on Remnant, unless they were a Maiden or had some other special power to balance the scales. However, it's worth remembering that Originium is a limited resource on Remnant.**

**EDIT: Okay, maybe not curbstomp. Now that I think of it, there are some strong Huntsmen and Huntresses capable of standing up to Casters. But Talulah is still hard to top.**

**Rhodes Island ****_does, _****canonically, have its own operators who live at Rhodes. Most of them are patients (Angelina, Mousse, etc.) but some are refugees (Istina, Zima, Gummy), independents (Skadi, Granni, Saria, etc.), or simply on-loan from allies (Shirayuki, Shaw, Jessica, etc.). That said, I agree that not all operators stay at Rhodes Island all the the time - SilverAsh, Pramanix, Ch'en and Hoshiguma are all important figures, and Texas, Exusiai, Franka, Liskarm, and a couple others only work for Rhodes Island under contract.**

**"So, is this prologue arc going to be several chapters long?" - A reviewer**

**Me: uh-oh.**

**I don't like long AN's. There's more I'd like to say, and more people I'd like to address, but I'm stopping here for now. This is about the limit I impose on myself for author notes/responses, so expect most future responses/AN to be shorter. And just because you feel like I didn't address you, doesn't mean I haven't considered your review/PM. I just don't want 20% of the word count to be notes and responses.**

* * *

"Good work, everyone," the Doctor called as Siege dispatched the last of the wolves with a smash of her hammer, "Mayer, Magallan, how are things going on your end?"

"Eheheh," Magallan chuckled sheepishly, getting up from her position next to one of the massive tracks. Rhodes Island ran on large threads, and while they also needed repairs, the Doctor knew there was a complex set of springs and pulleys designed to soften the impact of any rough patches the complex crossed over that likely also suffered damage. The hatch Magallan had been working on had been opened up, exposing both the inner spring system - in which many springs were tangled and bent horizontally - and a large number of wires - over half of which sparked dangerously.

"Sorry, Doctor. The damage is really severe," Magallan confessed. Her gloved hands were covered in grease, and her hazard suit-dress bore a few scratches. As if on cue, one of the springs sprung out with a twang, but was caught by one of Magallan's hovering drones, which deposited it in her waiting hands. "Mayer and I will need to come down here a few more times before we can finish everything," she continued, as if nothing had happened.

At another pillar, Mayer said nothing, still entirely engrossed in her task as her mechanical otters - Meebos, as she called them - scurried up and around her, removing and replacing parts as she manually controlled all of them at once. The box at her back had expanded further, with both a calculator and a control panel that she worked with furiously as her mechanical arms brought gears and springs to her eyes for brief inspection as she made snap judgments on what could be reused and what needed replacing.

Magallan followed the Doctor's gaze to the other engineer. "She's really something, isn't she?" Magallan laughed, "Rhine Lab wasn't exaggerating when they called her the one-woman workshop!" The penguin operator glanced back to her own handiwork. While at first glance it would seem that Magallan had been more productive, with the hatch she had been working on closer to completion, the Doctor spotted a few tags labeled 'complete' on two other panels.

It seemed Mayer worked at nearly three times Magallan's speed. Impressive, considering Magallan was no slouch either. Though to be fair, Magallan was also a field operator, and was probably more used to data collection.

"Your work is appreciated too," the Doctor spoke from beside her, patting another pillar, "There aren't many people capable of repairing these things."

"Thanks!" Magallan beamed, "I'll get right back to work then! These treads aren't going to fix themselves!"

"Go ahead," the Doctor felt amused at her enthusiasm as he began the short walk to Mayer.

"Mayer?" Mayer was still lost in her tinkering, so he reached out and tapped her shoulder.

Mayer let out a small scream and jumped at the contact. At the same time, her right hand swung out in a backhand slap as she spun around. Fortunately, the Doctor was already used the maim-on-interruption response, and a hasty step back made sure that the woman didn't break her hand on his mask.

"D-Docter?" she gasped, "Don't do that!"

"I tried to call out to you, but you seemed a little absorbed in what you were doing," the Doctor said, "How is it going?"

"Er, pretty well, I suppose?" Mayer huffed and turned back to controlling her robots, albeit at a slower pace, as she continued, "It'll take some more time - three days, at most - before we can get the inner mechanisms working again. Fortunately, even if we had to throw out every part in every panel, we'd still have enough spare furniture parts and building materials to fix all of them. It wouldn't hurt to save as many materials as possible though."

The Doctor watched as one of Mayer's mechanical arms accepted a black box from one of the Meebos and plugged it into an opening. Another arm, bearing a drill-shaped head attached to its end, emitted a clicking sound as a screwdriver head emerged. With a whir, it began to screw the box into its place, even as a third arm was seemingly checking for loose parts.

"I see you have things handled," the Doctor observed, "I'll leave you alone for now. The sun's setting soon, and we'll go back once it does, alright?"

Mayer groaned. "But my arms have lights build in," she complained, her third arm stopping its current action and lowering to be right in front of the Doctor. "See?" she said as a light right below the hand turned on and off.

"The combat operators are going to have a hard time keeping watch in the dark, though," the Doctor reminded, "Remember, even though we're directly under Rhodes Island, it's not safe with those monsters lurking around.

Mayer grumbled but didn't complain further.

"Thanks, Mayer."

"Put me on the team again tomorrow, alright?" she huffed, "I get bored when there's nothing to do, and my workshop ran out of polyester the other day, so now I've got to wait for Closure to get back to me."

"Noted. Keep up the good work," the Doctor stepped away. Now that he had checked up on the two mechanics, he returned to the combat operators patrolling the area around Rhodes Island. The sky was turning pink and orange as the sun set when he approached Lappland, who was patrolling the perimeter. "Anything?" he asked as he kept pace beside her.

"Hmm? Nah. No sign of any more enemies. Though some birds have recently begun to circle us." She squinted up at them. "Wouldn't be surprised if they were watching us. Scavengers, I bet."

The Doctor looked up into the sky, glad that the sun was already making its way down. Indeed, black specks were circling above them.

"Have they done anything?"

"Nah, it's just suspicious." Lappland glared at them some more, then huffed and started walking again. "Oi, you keeping up?"

"Ah, yes." The Doctor tore his gaze from the birds to follow Lappland.

The conversation promptly died. The Doctor wasn't particularly good at socializing, and Lappland was hardly approachable, so it was only to be expected.

The Doctor took the moment to observe their surroundings. The land was barren, with not a single tree or blade of grass in sight. The soil that crunched beneath their feet was a dark reddish color. Around them, large, purple crystals stuck out of the ground. Lappland and the Doctor were careful to steer clear of the crystals. Neither were interested in possibly worsening their Oripathy or contracting Oripathy, respectively.

Off in the distance, large crags and other rock formations stood out of the landscape, yet even they were bereft of plant life. The sun had set, but the last dregs of daylight still colored the sky pink.

Strange. If there was no life here, where did the wolves come from? What did they eat? Every food chain had producers at the very bottom, usually plants that converted sunlight into energy. But if there were no plants...

The Doctor paused, causing Lappland to stop as well. "What, something up?" She continued to scan the area.

The Doctor shook his head, then rummaged around in the many pockets of his coat before finally pulling out gloves and a baggie. Slipping the gloves on, he scooped up some dirt and put it in the baggie.

"Something for Eyjafjalla and Earthspirit to look at," he explained, pocketing the baggie. Lappland rolled her eyes but accepted the explanation.

"Come on," she insisted, "Waiting in one place is a fine way to get ambushed."

If there were no plants producing energy, then it was possible that there were microorganisms serving as the producers in the ecosystem of this place. Even if there weren't, Eyjafjalla and Earthspirit were geologists - they could probably extract some information from a rock sample.

With that, they continued on their way. After some time, they ran into Siege, heading the opposite direction, who merely gave them a nod.

They kept walking for some time, before a thought occurred to the Doctor. "Lappland, you fear Red, yes?"

Projekt Red was an operator that specialized in dangerous missions, including assassination, sabotage, and infiltration. She generally kept to herself, and most other operators were fine with doing the same, except for other Lupo - wolf people. All Lupo seemed to treat her as a threat, and Lappland was no different.

Lappland snorted. "Fear her? Nah. But I get the feeling... it's quite annoying, but I feel like I'd die if I fight her."

"Does it have to do with the fact that you're both Lupo?"

Lappland shrugged. "Maybe. We can smell each other, and Red has an irritating scent." She scowled.

"So all Lupo can smell each other," the Doctor asked.

"Duh. Why?"

...That actually explained a lot of strange behavior he had seen before. Like the number of times Texas stood up in the middle of a briefing and walked out.

"What did you smell from the wolves you killed?"

"So that was why," she muttered. She considered the question, then shrugged. "Death and decay, I guess."

"So they aren't Lupo."

"No, I'm certain that they were not some sub-species of Lupo," she confirmed, "I definitely-"

"Doctor, Doctor!" The two turned to find Siege running towards them.

It was now that the Doctor realized that the moon had already begun to rise. He hadn't noticed that darkness had set in, since the lights of Rhodes Island had illuminated the area.

...Wait.

"Doctor, the moon!" Siege said the instant she caught up to them, "The moon is-"

"Yes," the Doctor murmured as he and Lappland stared at the shattered shape above them.

* * *

"Nice job," Amiya greeted them as they entered the reception room, "How was the situation outside?"

The Doctor didn't answer, seeming lost in thought. Thus, Amiya tried again.

"Doctor?" she tilted her head, "Did something happen?"

"Take a break in the dorms," the Doctor told the operators, who left in twos and threes through various doors, all talking about something. What was it? He then turned to address her. "Did you look through the cameras outside?"

"The cameras? Yes, I was watching you all from the control room. The locals attacked you on sight, and our operators successfully drove them away. After that, you just did patrols. I, um," she flushed from embarrassment, "I missed a bit at the end though. Was there something that I missed?" She _may _have left on a water break when she saw nothing was happening. As Amiya led the Doctor forward, she tapped a panel, and a door slid open before them. The two passed through and found themselves in the control room.

"The moon is broken," the Doctor told her.

"The moon is... broken?" despite the trust she placed in the Doctor, Amiya still had a hard time wrapping her head around that. "U-Um, broken, as in-"

"Shattered." Ch'en stepped out from behind a monitor. Her clothes were slightly dirty and sported a few scratches, evidence of her involvement in the repair work currently under progress. "I left Hoshiguma in charge of the internal repairs and returned to the control room to meet you, but it turned out neither of you were here at the time. But enough about what I've been doing - there are more important things for us to worry about. The moon is completely shattered." She gestured to the screen she had been sitting behind. She must have been watching the monitors while she waited. "Take a look for yourself."

Amiya walked over and checked the screen. And then she kept staring at it. The Doctor was right - the moon had been broken, with large shards separated from the main, vaguely crescent shape. "...How?"

"We can only guess," Ch'en admitted, "Considering we don't know what the Rift Reactor was designed to do. My first guess would be that the Reactor destroyed the moon. However, the Reactor, at the time it fired, was situated horizontally."

"...It shouldn't have done anything to the moon," the Doctor agreed, "Unless whatever it fired curved upwards. But that explanation still doesn't explain how Rhodes Island was transported, and there should have been massive damage to the hangar."

"Which there isn't," Amiya muttered, finally taking her eyes off the screen. She thought back to the initial reports on the damage. "In fact, our hangar is completely intact. Almost like the eye of a storm."

"...There's a second possibility that I've thought of," the Doctor said. Immediately, he had their attention. "It is possible that the Rift Reactor sent us to another planet."

"That's... unlikely. But possible." Ch'en seemed doubtful.

"Yes, I can see the reasoning behind this," Amiya agreed with the Doctor, "If our moon wasn't destroyed, maybe we were placed somewhere with a different moon - one that is _already _shattered."

"Before we start confirming any theories or make any new ones, let's gather some more clues." The Doctor held up the bag of dirt. "I'll give this to Eyjafjalla and Earthspirit. We'll see what they can make of it."

"We'll also need to form another team to extract some of those crystals," Amiya added, "In case we can't replenish our Originium stores here. And another team to survey the land. We're going to have to be very active for the next week." Amiya was already running through the possible teams they could send out. They were going to have to arrange several teams, in fact, since there were multiple tasks at hand.

"There is still the matter of repairs," Ch'en reminded her, "Those cannot be neglected."

Amiya nodded and began to count off on her fingers. "So the list of things we have to do include: repairing damaged sections of Rhodes Island, restoring mobility, retrieving crystal and soil samples, and surveying the land. We will also need operators to examine the Rift Reactor, to see if we can understand how it functions and whether we can repair it."

"Restoring our mobility is still the most important task," Ch'en stated, "We don't know the combat capabilities of the creatures that live here - for all we know, the wolves may only be the weakest. We need to be able to retreat, if necessary."

"I have to disagree," the Doctor argued, "Getting samples of the crystals should be most important. Development of an Originium substitute won't be instantaneous, and there's no guarantee that the substitute will be as effective as actual Originium. We need to make our Originium reserves last."

"That may be a concern in a week, but the monsters can attack at any moment. If we are overrun here and cannot move, then we are finished."

"A small team of our operators already handled those wolves with ease," the Doctor shot back, "Anything capable of threatening us would have to be several magnitudes higher to-"

"Wait, wait, wait! Hold on!" Amiya interjected, "There's no need to argue. We have enough operators to do both, and then some."

"That's... true."

"Very well."

"Alright." Amiya let out a sigh of relief, crisis had been averted. Now, to figure out their game plan. Usually, she had Kal'tsit offering advice, but while the Doctor probably would not be able to help, Ch'en should be at least somewhat familiar with dividing tasks in an organization, having served as head of the Lungmen Guard Department's Special Inspection Unit. "This is what we'll do. Of course, we won't touch the medical branch - we need people to stay on top of the Oripathy infections. We'll send three teams to collect samples, as well as four squads to survey the land. We'll also have three squads dedicated to fixing Rhodes' wheels. We'll pull any combat-capable operators out of the research and development branch; the remainder will work on the Rift Reactor, and once the crystal samples are retrieved, the Originium substitute as well. The people we took out as well as any operators left will work in teams to repair the damaged areas within Rhodes Island. We'll have operators working outside switch with operators working on interior repairs, to give returning operators a chance to rest. We'll tweak things a bit, but that's the general outline. Is that a good balance?"

Rhodes had many operators - roughly 2000. But even with most operators having been called back to handle the security required of Pramanix's visit and the transfer of the Rift Reactor, many operators had still been in the field when they were transported. Now, their numbers were around 700: 300 combat-ready operators, 200 operators in research and development, and 200 non-combat operators that mostly worked in the medical field.

Oh, and there were many patients and refugees that lived aboard Rhodes Island, but Amiya wasn't going to force them to work. Technically, they weren't employed under her, and they did help things run by producing various goods and services. Still, she would have to see if any of them were willing to be recruited as operators.

At Rhodes, a "team" was three to five people, while a "squad" was at ten to twelve - usually of three or four teams. If they followed the plan Amiya outlined, there would be slightly less than 100 operators sent outside to investigate. The research and development branch, once any combat-capable operators were taken out, consisted of 100 or so operators. Thus, the remaining 300 operators would be assigned to work on reopening damaged sections of Rhodes and to be on standby if necessary.

"It is acceptable." Ch'en gave her approval. "I'm glad you're experienced with this."

The Doctor, however, shook his head.

"What about managing food and maintaining equipment? There must be people to prepare food. We also have lots of gear that needs constant maintenance."

Amiya completely forgot about that! She had been too focused on getting everything done. "Then we'll instead reallocate..." She thought for a bit. "Fifty or so operators from interior repairs to keep Rhodes running, and ask some of the patients if they'd be willing to help. They'll be in charge of maintaining the complex and preparing food."

The Doctor nodded. "Okay. That's the only thing I noticed. Well done."

Amiya smiled. "Alright, then. That's the end of our impromptu meeting, then."

"No, wait," Ch'en stopped her, "There is still one more thing to address."

Amiya tilted her head in confusion. "What is it?"

"You need to address how you will treat operators that don't serve full time. Operators such as myself, and those from Penguin Logistics and Blacksteel Worldwide," Ch'en reminded her.

Rhodes Island had employed operators from various other organizations. These other organizations, such as Kjerag, Penguin Logistics, and Blacksteel Worldwide, had lent them operators, but said operators technically were not Rhodes Island employees, and their time with Rhodes Island was supposed to be temporary.

"We were also brought into this mess as well. I assume you still want us to work with you? Then we need to determine the nature of our contract. Will we be required to work the same amount as full time operators? Will we be paid while under your employ? Will you kick out those that refuse to work? These are questions you have to answer."

"And the refugees," the Doctor added absentmindedly, as if talking to himself, "We do still have people we rescued from Chernobog... what'll we do with those who aren't contributing in some way?"

"I-, um, I'm thinking about it. Give me some time. All I can say for certain is that we won't kick anyone out. Rhodes never leaves anyone behind. Other than that... we'll do our best to come up with a fair answer that satisfies everyone. So please, Madam Ch'en, work with us." She ended her request with a small bow. That was how Lungmen customs worked, right?

Ch'en's eyes narrowed as she stared into Amiya's own. After a brief moment, she turned away. "That's the best promise I can get, I suppose. In return, I can assure you that until we return home, the Lungmen operators are willing to lend a hand, as long as you keep searching for a way back. It is in our mutual interests to get back quickly, after all, and at the moment, you are our most reliable ally." And with that, she exited the control room, the sliding door closing shut behind her with a woosh.

"I should be going too." The Doctor also turned to leave. "I'll be back to arrange the teams. We'll also talk about how we'll resolve the issue of contracted operators and the refugees then, alright?"

"Wait!" Amiya managed to squeeze out, "Is it okay if I walked with you?"

"Hm? Don't you have other work?"

"Not really." The assignment of roles was really the only thing she had to do at the moment.

"Alright, then. Let's pay those geologists a visit, get all the roles assigned, and then turn in for the night. We can announce everything tomorrow. It's already late, and when we're done, it'll probably be past midnight. No one's going to be awake then, are they?"

* * *

Echo was pretty sure they weren't supposed to be awake past midnight.

Nor were Vigna and Mousse supposed to be playing music at this ungodly time of night, and Sora just straight up wasn't supposed to be in their room. Echo honestly didn't mind, except this meant she had to use her Arts to soundproof the room. Which, in turn, meant she had to stay awake with them. Echo's Arts could bounce noises, mute sounds, and make a tune come from multiple places at once, but she couldn't magically make them stop.

The dorm had two bunk beds, enough for four people. Echo shared the dorm with Mousse, Vigna, and Manticore, though since Manticore was both quiet and preferred to stay invisible, it was as if there were only three people. Echo shared one a bed with Mousse, with her on the top bunk and Mousse on the bottom.

Currently, Vigna was giving Mousse another one of her lesson on the guitar, the cat girl trying to listen attentively to every word the red-haired demon said. Unfortunately, Echo could tell she was distracted by Sora, who stood slightly to the side and commented every now and then. If Echo remembered correctly, Mousse was a fan of Sora, who was an idol back in Terra. It was a small world, apparently.

All of them were still dressed in their standard gear. For Vigna, that meant a white button-up shirt, shorts, and a sleeveless jacket. For Sora, a skirt and a white shirt with a vest over it. And for both Mousse and Echo, dark blue coat-like dresses with frills.

The similarities between Echo's and Mousse's outfits were no coincidence. Someone had remarked that Mousse and Echo looked like a palette swap, both sporting the same medium-length hair style, similar faces, and even the same cat ears, with the only difference being that Echo had black hair, dark green eyes, and one tail, compared to Mousse's yellow-and-brown hair, lighter green eyes, and two tails. They had joked that if the two wore the same clothes and one of them dyed their hair, they'd be indistinguishable. After a dare from Vigna, Echo really had changed her wardrobe and dyed her hair.

They really had confused a lot of people. Though it was also funny to know that Lancet and Castle instantly knew what was going on even when everyone else was running around like chickens with their heads cut off.

At any rate, though the hair dye had eventually washed out, Echo had kept the clothes. They were at least more practical than her previous clothes.

...No one talked about her previous clothes. She'd claw anyone who did. That was a time of shame, of deep embarrassment.

"U-Um," she tried to speak, but the other three didn't seem to hear her.

"So you see, you need to put your right hand here to play G."

"Uh-huh!"

"And then run the pick over the string."

A single note resounded within the room as Mousse strummed the guitar. "Okay! I got it."

"Great job, Mousse!" Sora cheered. Mousse turned pink at the praise from the idol.

"Th-Thank you!"

"Let's bring it to the top. Try to play the short song I taught you."

"Okay!"

"U-Um," Echo tried again, "G-Guys? I think we-"

She was interrupted when Mousse began to strum. "L-Like this?"

"That was good! Keep going."

Mousse continued to play the melody. It was a simple melody of 16 notes, but when she finished, she looked as proud as if she had played Canon in D Major. Echo was also proud of her, but really would have preferred if they did this during the day and not now. "Was that okay?"

"Yup! Could use a little work, but if you remember those notes you played, that'll help with a bunch of other songs." Vigna grinned. "Ready to move on?"

"Okay!"

"Then for our next song... Hey, Sora, whaddya think?"

"Hmm... maybe something from one of your books? I think she's ready for that"

"Maybe. Okay! Got it." Vigna shuffled around in a bag by her bed before pulling out a thin book labeled "Learning with Music: Guitar Level 1" and flipping to the middle.

"Um-" Echo managed.

"Nah, too easy." Vigna then flipped towards the back. "Ah, this might be closer. Try this!"

"A-Are you sure? It looks a little hard..."

"I'm sure. Once I teach you to read the notes - which should be easy peasy - you'll find that it's a breeze!"

Echo had enough. "Guys!" she yelled. Or so she did in her head. On the outside, what came out was a slightly louder "Guys?" that still failed to get their attention. So she turned to an old, tried and true method.

"Guys?" The voice was just as quiet, but with her Arts active, she sent the whisper straight into their ears, causing them all to jump.

"Oi, Echo!" Vigna complained, "I told you to stop doing that! It feels weird!"

"O-Oh, sorry. Didn't mean to-" Wait, no, she wasn't sorry, and she definitely did mean to do that! "Wait, no, I mean..."

Sora opened her mouth to speak, but Vigna stopped her. "Echo, what is it? Spit it out."

Chance!

"I, um, I think we should go to sleep now. It's pretty late, and I think we might have work tomorrow. Um, if that's okay...?" No, wait, don't ask if it's okay! Be more assertive!

As Echo mentally scoded herself, Vigna rolled her eyes but nevertheless turned to the other two. "You heard her. How about it?" Vigna asked Sora and Mousse, "Wanna turn in for the night?"

"Nah, Exusiai always sleeps late, and Texas always stays up with her," Sora proclaimed as she stretched her arms, "I can keep going!"

Mousse seemed to be a different story. "If you want me to keep going, um, I can. But..."

"Fine, fine. Sorry, Sora, but it looks like we're stopping now." Mousse handed over the guitar, and Vigna put it back in its case. "Do you want me to walk with you to your room?"

"Sure! It always feels weird to walk around Rhodes Island alone at night. When there's no one around... things just feel really creepy, you know what I mean?"

"Yeah, it's like any one of those horror movies could happen in real life. Like in 'the Scream,' when-" Vigna closed the case. "-Gale was-" she paused, then seemingly realized that she and Sora were in a room with three introverts that couldn't even handle a jump scare. With another sigh, she stood up. "Come on, we can keep talking on the way to your room."

"Huh? Sure then."

And with that, the two of them left the room, leaving just Mousse, Echo, and Manticore - oh, so Manticore _was_ in the room the whole time. Situated on top of the other bed and already in her pajamas, she peered over the edge, as if checking if they had actually gone. Once she confirmed it, she promptly buried herself in her sheets.

"Erm..." Echo glanced over at Mousse. There was only one bathroom per room, after all, and both of them needed to get ready to sleep.

"You can go first," Mousse offered quietly. Echo nodded and headed to the bathroom to brush her teeth.

As she did so, she couldn't help but wonder what tomorrow might bring.

* * *

One did not usually consider the (planned) destruction of the human race something to be happy about.

Salem was not most people.

From her castle in the Grimmlands, she gave the orders that would lead to the eventual destruction of humanity. As she stood on the balcony, she gazed off in the direction that she knew Vale was.

She couldn't see Vale, of course. Though she had powerful magic, even she could not see across entire continents without some preparation. She didn't need to see that far, though. She already knew Ozpin would be training his warriors and Cinder would be putting her plans in motion.

Two years. That would be all it took for Vale to fall.

"Oh?" A small crow-like bird approached her, and she raised a finger for it to perch on. "What does my nevermore have for me today?"

The bird gave a series of chirps, though Salem understood every word.

"My, that is interesting. Humans are trying to establish a settlement on our land?" Slowly, very slowly, a smile crept onto her face. "It's only fair that they receive an audience with their queen."

* * *

_Rhodes Island Files_

_Originium_

_A material found in the aftermath of a Catastrophe, Originium serves as the primary fuel source of all technology on Terra. It powers everything, from everyday appliances such as lights and telephones to combat gear, such as guns and missiles. It is also used to power special abilities called Arts (see Arts, pg. 5), who's users are called Casters, though most Infected (see Oripathy, pg. 4) use the Originium within their own bodies instead. Refined Originium is called Originite Prime, or often shortened to just Originite. There also exists a less concentrated and impure version of Originium, called Orundum, which works serves as an excellent conductor in appliances. Most Casters prefer to use Orundum to fuel their Arts, as Originite is too dangerous._

_Originium is primarily obtained from Catastrophes (see Catastrophes, pg. 2). Catastrophes are the only renewable source of pure Originium, and due to their dangerous nature, Originium, in all of its forms, is expensive and difficult to obtain. Since large amounts of exposure to Originium may cause Oripathy (see Oripathy, pg. 4), most nations chose to avoid areas that have been struck by Catastrophes for years. Pure Originium may also be obtained by mining, as there are Catastrophe sites that have not been discovered and were eventually buried by time, the Originium still intact and waiting to be found._

_Though battles have been fought over Originium-infested grounds, cities themselves continue to avoid such areas. As we have learned from the unfortunate Messina incident, it is unsafe to situate cities over such grounds, even if there are walls and such, for it is near impossible to completely block the effects of Originium with regular walls. The city of Messina discovered this when the whole city became infected with Oripathy in a week. Often times, a group is sent out from the city to collect the Originium, where it can be stored in appropriate containers, ensuring that citizens are exposed as little as possible._

_Before it can be used, Originium is first refined into Originite Prime. In this form, pure Originite is kept in small, special containers, and used as batteries for appliances. Due to the massive amount of power contained in Originite, most small Originite-powered tools, such smoke alarms, may last years, or even decades, before requiring replacement. However, the engines required to move cities and the use of Arts and larger devices expend much more energy, and thus need more frequent replacement. Still, most Arts do not expend much energy, and under the Werg's Principle, it is impossible for an Infected to cure their Oripathy by attempting to use up all the Originium in their body. The spread of Originium in an Infected will always outpace any attempt to use it all._

_It is possible to artificially produce Originium, but the result is impure and instead called Orundum. Orundum may be produced in factories, but the process is inefficient and not usually worth the time. In cases of Oripathy (see Oripathy, pg. 4), the death of an Infected results in their body crystallizing into Orundum, making it possible to farm the bodies of the Infected. A few nations used to follow this practice, until it was banned under the Third Terranian Accord, deemed unethical. It appears even politicians have standards._


	4. Paper Ark 4

**I'm super sorry, everyone who was waiting for this. I really have no excuse for delaying this.**

**Well, okay, I have excuses for delaying this, just not excuses for delaying this chapter _for so long_.**

**This chapter is admittedly mostly fluff. A peek into the normal people. And it's definitely short, mostly because I want to get _something_ out.**

**I saw the anniversary animation, and yeah, mobile cities are on tracks. So I'm gonna go back and change that... eventually. Along with rewrites for some scenes that I'm not too happy with, and to cover up a particular plot hole - Texas shouldn't be part of the fighting force, because technically her relationship with Rhodes Island is currently in question. Everyone else there was either employed by Rhodes or has signed some kind of contract with Rhodes to continue working with them - Mayer and Magallan work at Rhodes even though they are technically still part of Rhine Labs, Jessica is part of an exchange system between Rhodes and Blacksteel, and Meteorite is an actual employee.**

**While some inhabitants of Remnant compete with Arknights Casters with Dust and their Semblance, in the end, stronger Casters like Talulah and Frostnova are all on a crazy scale that can only really be matched with magic or in a multi-vs-one. After all, Talulah melts everything that approaches and Frostnova can flash freeze the battlefield. Though they tend to be the exception, and most operators are on a level that puts them closer to Huntsmen, Huntresses, and those in-training. Rhodes' lack of Aura is a hindrance to the Rhode Island crew, though, regardless of how much power anyone is capable of throwing around.**

**A side note: Apix and Elie are short for their actual code names. It'll come up eventually, but until then, feel free to guess what they're short for.**

**By the way, I'm kinda curious now. How many people know what the title references?**

**EDIT: I've gone back and fixed the plot issues. Unfortunately, I'm terribly unorganized, and my numbering for the chapters in the Doc Manager was completely wonky, so some people might see some switched up chapters before I managed to get around to fixing them.**

* * *

Warfarin groaned. "Ugh... I messed up..."

"Now, now, I'm sure everything will work out," the person to her right comforted.

Warfarin shot her a look. Pleiades was a relatively new noncombat operator who specialized in the production of electronics and design. Hailing from Victoria, she usually wore a beret, shawl, and robes, her cat ears hidden under the beret. As always, her gaze was locked on the tablet in her hands, yet as they walked, she managed to avoid walking into the walls.

Pleiades really spent too much time on her tablet and phone. She was lucky it was night time, and no one else was wandering the halls.

"I lost myself and attacked the Doctor."

"Well, that's not good."

"How am I supposed to get the Doctor to trust me if I go into a frenzy whenever I smell his blood?"

"Why don't you just ask Closure? She doesn't seem to be bothered by the Doctor's blood."

"I already have. She's of no help."

Pleiades looked up from her tablet. "How so?"

"She's an engineer. Whenever she meets the Doctor, the smell of machinery and oil always covers up the smell of blood. Not to mention she's already in the habit of starving herself whenever she gets overinvested in one of her projects. I'm small enough as is. I don't need to further stunt my growth."

"You are small," Pleiades agreed, returning to the tablet, "If I didn't know about the lifespans of vampires, I'd peg you as someone in their 20s."

"I'm _still_ small for a vampire," Warfarin groused, "Closure's centuries _younger_ than me, yet she could pass for my older sister. How she does it, I have no clue. She refuses to come to my lab, and ever since Kal'tsit banned me from taking samples..."

"Ah, right. Your lab." Pleiades coughed awkwardly, "Well, that's understandable."

"Is it?" Warfarin frowned. "Why wouldn't she want to come to my lab?"

"How about your questionable work ethics?"

"What questionable about my work ethics?"

"Warfarin, I'm sure plenty of people have approached you over your ethics."

"I still don't understand what's wrong with-"

"Auntie Warfarin?"

Warfarin paused and turned, and beside her, so did Pleiades. "Apix?" Then she pursed her lips. "What did I say about calling me auntie?"

"Not to do it. Sorry." Just a meter away, the young boy rubbed the back of his head awkwardly. His horns and forked tail marked his race as a Sarkaz.

"Lighten up, Warfarin. Isn't calling others auntie or uncle a way of showing attachment in Lungmen?"

Warfarin ignored Pleiades. "Did you need something, Apix?"

"Um, sort of? Elie and I wanted to know if something bad happened recently. Everyone's been super busy lately, but no one's told us anything about what's happening."

"A malfunctioning machine caused some damage to Rhodes Island. It's nothing that we can't solve." She reached out and patted him on the head - thank goodness he was actually her height, or else it would be strange to have to reach up to pat him, "You should go to sleep. I know you and Elie are used to staying up, but we have a long day ahead of us."

"Okay." He gave a small bow. "I'll see you tomorrow then, Auntie Warfarin."

When he turned around the corner and was out of earshot, Pleiades nudged Warfarin. Her tablet was put away, and she was giving Warfarin a teasing smirk. "You hear that, 'Auntie' Warfarin?"

"Shush."

"Isn't it adorable that Elie and Apix follow you around, calling you auntie?"

"Shut it. We have the morning shift at the reception desk. You go to sleep too."

* * *

Liskarm woke up to the sound of giggling. Immediately, she knew it was Franka's fault.

"What did you do now, Franka?" she groaned, rubbing her eyes. A glance told her that Franka was standing by the door, dressed in her grey uniform with an innocent smile on her face.

There were already several things wrong with that picture. For one, Franka always woke up after Liskarm. Franka was not morning person, which led to the second issue - Franka's hair was neat and tidy, her fox ears clearly visible. That was impossible - Franka's hair was never tidy in the mornings. She tended to move around in her sleep, and it showed in the bed head that she had every day. It had caused them to be late to meetings at times, when she refused to leave the room until she had straightened it.

Conclusion: Franka had done something, and was prepared to run the moment Liskarm found out what it was.

"Nothing at all, Liskarm!" That smile was growing more and more suspicious. Liskarm's eyes wandered the room that Rhodes had given them. Jessica and Vanilla were still fast asleep, and Liskarm's luggage was in the same place at the foot of her bunk as she always left it.

Seeing nothing wrong, Liskarm finally sat up in bed - only to freeze when she felt something brush against her back. Two things, in fact.

Liskarm's hair wasn't that long. And why were there weights attached to her head? As a Vouivre, Liskarm did have horns, but something was off today. She reached behind her back, and her hand made contact with something soft and fluffy. She grabbed it and was startled when that something said "Gao!"

"What...?" Liskarm brought her catch in front of her. Sitting in her hands was a small plushie of a wyvern, a ribbon attaching it too... she ran a hand up the ribbon. Her horns?! She gave the wyvern a small squeeze, and once again, the dragon cried "Gao!"

Oh, and the dragon was bright pink.

Franka broke down laughing. Oh, how Liskarm hated her sometimes.

"Franka."

Franka only laughed harder.

Liskarm suddenly stood from her bed, as if about to grab her annoying partner, and Franka bolted out the door, still snickering. With a sigh, Liskarm sat back down and started untying the plushies from her horns.

Like hell she was going to walk around in public with two pink stuffed animals stuck to her!

* * *

Each operator was assigned a dorm, even if they only worked with Rhodes from time-to-time. It may mean that many rooms were often empty, but the Rhodes Island complex could easily fit over ten thousand people. A little bit of wasted space was fine. Each dorm could hold at most five people, and every five dorms were connected to a shared common room. Every common room was different, with the one connected to Liskarm's room containing a bar, several tables, and two chairs for every table. A sofa was located in the corner.

Overall, this common room was fairly normal. Liskarm had heard of other, more... creative common rooms. There was apparently one full of hazmat suits, each of them with a smiley face drawn on. Freaky.

It was after stepping out of her common room, fully dressed in a blue jacket and black sweater and skirt, that Liskarm finally checked her phone. At least Franka's shenanigans made sure that they woke up early and didn't have to fight with Vanilla and Jessica over the bathroom.

Well, fight was being generous. With how timid Jessica was and how Vanilla generally deferred to the two senior operators, it felt like bullying, and Liskarm would rather not be a bully.

The first thing she noticed was the message from Amiya.

_Employment being offered to everyone at Rhodes Island_

_Due to recent events, we have been stranded in an unknown land. As it is uncertain when we will be able to regain contact with Terranian civilization, Rhodes Island is offering employment for any operators that are currently without work. We hope you will work together with us through these troubling times until we regain contact._

_For operators with temporary contracts, we are willing to extend the duration of your contracts indefinitely._

_Due to a current shortage of personal, we are re-opening operator recruitment. To those who have remained with us but have chosen not to or have been denied the opportunity to become operators, we are now accepting applications._

_The reception room front desks will be open to questions. Please visit to submit your decision and for more information._

Knowing Franka, she'd be first in line to renew their contract. Heck, she'd been commenting about how much she enjoyed the freedom Rhodes offered for some time now, and had joked plenty about leaving Blacksteel Worldwide.

Liskarm was hardly about to leave her partner alone at Rhodes.

Though really, it was hardly like anyone was going to turn down the offer. They all wanted to get back, and if Rhodes was going to help them do it, then why not throw your lot with them?

Franka was probably at breakfast, and while Liskarm also intended to eat, it was better to get important things out of the way. With that in mind, Liskarm made straight for the nearest reception room. A few turns and corridors led her to a door, the plaque next to it reading 'RR 7.'

The door automatically opened as she approached. Unlike the common rooms, each reception room was identical, filled with comfy couches and tables. In a corner was a desk. While said desk was usually empty, today two operators shared the space. One was seemingly hard at work, filling out paperwork, while the other sat back and was apparently gaming on her phone.

As Liskarm approached, the busy one looked up. From their name tags, the gaming operator was Pleiades, while the working one was Warfarin.

...wasn't this the crazy lady that conducted mentally scarring experiments and hungered for the Doctor's blood?

"How can I help you?" Warfarin asked. Liskarm took note of her pale skin and red eyes. Must be a vampire.

"I would like to learn about how to extend my employment with Rhodes Island. Do you have a brochure or anything?"

"Sure," the vampire replied, slipping a paper off the top of a stack. "Here you go. Feel free to ask us any further questions. Is there anything else we can help you with?"

"Can I get a second one? For my partner?"

"Are you Liskarm?" Dressed in a dark blue robe and sporting a messy nest of blonde hair, Pleiades had finally looked up from the phone.

"Yes?"

"Your partner, Franka, already stopped by. She picked up a brochure and asked some questions. She said she'd be heading towards cafeteria 4."

"Right, thank you," Liskarm replied crisply. She turned and walked off. She was at the door when Pleiades spoke again.

"She also called you a lazy lizard," Pleiades added absentmindedly as she returned to her phone, "Something about oversleeping."

Liskarm froze. "She called me a what, again?" she asked slowly.

"She called you a lazy lizard," Pleiades repeated as she spammed a button. Warfarin was shaking her head in exasperation.

Why, that wicked fox! She knew full well that Liskarm was usually up before her!

In Rhodes Island, the cafeterias provided several free options for food. Though their options were often healthy, the taste was not that great. Fortunately, Rhodes Island also allowed operators to use the kitchen as long as there was space, and certain operators had taken to setting up booths to sell their cooking as tastier alternatives.

When Liskarm arrived at the cafeteria, she made a beeline towards Gummy's table, where the cheery Ursus operator was selling omeletes. Gummy's cooking was popular, and Liskarm's tendency to wake up early meant that she rarely encountered a line, so she quickly paid Gummy 50 LMD for an omelette and began searching for Franka.

As Pleiades had said, she did find Franka, chatting up a storm with Exusiai and Texas. Well, chatting with Exusiai as Texas sat next to them. Liskarm calmly made her way over to her prankster partner and tapped her on the shoulder, sending a small burst of lightning through her fingertip. One of the more mundane uses of Lightning Arts.

Franka flinched at the contact, but otherwise hid her surprise. "Oh, Liskarm!" She said as she turned to face her.

Darn it. What was the point of zapping Franka if she didn't even react?

"Yo, Liskarm!" Exusiai said cheerfully as Liskarm set her food down, "Franka was just telling us about how you two once raided a Siracusian hideout! Is it true that you fainted in the middle of-" She was interrupted when Texas elbowed her, but the damage was done.

"Yes, it's true," Liskarm replied. "After taking out four of the armored militants with my Arts, I knocked myself out." A small grin wormed its way onto her face. "But do you want to know what happened right after that?"

Franka froze. Revenge was sweet.

"She panicked and accidentally dropped her sword into a storm drain. Since we were in the middle of the mafia, she tried to use my gun and shield instead. She made the gun explode."

"Hey," Franka protested, "We agreed not to talk about that part-"

"If you paid me back for the gun," Liskarm finished for her as she ate a piece of her omelete, "Which you still haven't."

"I paid back _most_ of it?" Franka tried.

"You still owe me 500 LMD."

Franka pouted, knowing she was defeated. Liskarm smiled at her victory.

"Oh yeah," Exusiai interjected, noticing to the identical papers both Liskarm and Franka had, "What are those?"

"Rhodes Island employee contracts," Liskarm answered, handing hers over so that Exusiai could take a look.

The angel took the pamphlet and began to scan it. "Oh, I see! You got this from the reception room, right? Texas and I were going to take a look after breakfast." When she finished glancing it over, she passed it on to Texas. "Are you guys gong to join Rhodes?"

"Of course! I still need to pay Liskarm back 500 LMD!"

Liskarm sighed. "My idiot partner would probably bite off more than she can chew-"

"Hey!"

"-without me, so yes, I'll be taking them up on the offer."

Exusiai grinned. "We were thinking the same! Rhodes is a pretty chill place, after all!"

"And because she's broke," Texas added.

"I don't regret a - hi there, Sora! - single dollar!"

"Morning," Sora yawned as she joined them, a plate of pancakes in hand. She sat herself down next to Texas. "What were you all talking about?" Compared to her normal, more energetic self, Sora was far more subdued. It seemed that she may not be a morning person.

Or perhaps she slept late? Didn't idols have to get their beauty sleep, or whatever? Well, Liskarm wouldn't know.

"Nothing much, just chatting about how Texas and Exusiai plan to ditch Penguin Logistics," Franka supplied.

"Hey, wait a second-"

"I see," Sora nodded and turned to her pancakes. Then, a few seconds later, "Wait, what?!"

Franka giggled at Sora's outburst.

Liskarm sighed again. Franka and her antics.

* * *

While most people were waking up or eating breakfast, Firewatch had been up for hours already. Someone needed to keep watch at night, and she was one of the unlucky souls that had the misfortune of being assigned to it.

She was rather used to staying up late. Life as a mercenary had guaranteed that, had taught her that you never knew who could be trusted. Even at Rhodes Island, she slept with one eye open and her crossbow in bed beside her.

Even if she believed Rhodes Island was a place full of good people, it would only take one traitor to tear it all down. That was the fate her hometown had suffered, when someone brought the Ursus to their door.

It was cold today. A breeze blew past her as she leaned over the railing of a side deck, causing her dull-colored jacket to flutter slightly in the wind. The chilliness prompted her to wrap the jacket tighter around herself.

She'd seen another one of the watchmen decked out in a scarf and beanie. It was unfortunate that her antlers made it difficult for her to wear any headgear of her own, but at least her hometown had been cold and she acclimated quickly.

She heard someone approaching behind her. Their footsteps were completely silent, the only sign of their approach being a shuffling sound of their clothes. The person was likely here to relieve her from guard duty, and from his silent footsteps was likely experienced in combat. From her memory of the people who were assigned after her...

"Flamebringer," Firewatch turned to face the Sarkaz swordsman standing in the doorway. She crushed the irritation that arose at the sight of the man's lazy form of dress.

"Firewatch," he said, "Your shift's up. Shoo along, now."

"Fine. If you see something, actually sound the alarm this time."

Flamebringer rolled his eyes. "I took care of it last time, didn't I?"

"Yes," she drawled, "and I suppose I'll just trust you to take care of every enemy that comes our way with that sharp stick of yours."

"Oi. You badmouthing my sword?"

"I am merely criticizing your seeming inability to sound the alarm when you're supposed to do so."

"Tch. Don't you have better things to do than to nag me? Scram."

It was now her turn to roll her eyes. But before she could leave her post, she noticed movement in the corner of her eye, and whirled around.

"Oi, what are you even doing, midget?"

She was _not_ that short.

"Shut it." She scanned the terrain. It was all barren land, with strange purple crystals rising up from the ground. There were few places to hide - but then she saw it. A wolf-like creature with a skull-like mask, exactly as the team last night had reported, appeared as it crested a hill. According to what she was told, they were hostile, attacking on sight. It was out of range, but Firewatch brought her crossbow up anyways.

"What the hell-" Flamebringer was almost out of patience, but Firewatch interrupted him.

"We have company," she told him.

He frowned and approached the railing as well. As if on cue, more of the monsters began to emerge, ranging from large mammoths to tigers with massive teeth. "Ah," he said, suddenly sounding cheerful, "So we do."

Of course he'd be happy to see enemies.

Firewatch kept an eye on the wolf as she brought her transceiver to her mouth. "Hello? Please sound the alert, and get the Doctor to the control room. The locals have showed up again." As she spoke, more monsters appeared over the hill, including tigers with large fangs and enormous mammoths. "And they've brought friends."

"All right! I'm heading down!"

"Hey, wait!" But it was too late. In a single leap, Flamebringer had already jumped down from the railing.

Of all the things that idiot could've chosen to do...

_"Firewatch? Can you hear me?"_ the Doctor's groggy voice came on over the transceiver. He must have recently gotten up. Understandable.

"I hear you."

_"We see the situation outside. I've dispatched Courier and Haze to join you. Rhodes will provide fire support as long as you stay close to the landship, and make sure Flamebringer doesn't get taken out."_

"Understood." Firewatch sighed and slipped the transceiver back on her belt. "Oi, idiot, stop charging at them! You're getting out of my range!"

* * *

"It hasn't even been a day, and they're attacking again?!" Swire complained, "Why won't they leave us alone? We haven't done anything to them!"

Ch'en opened her mouth to say something, but then Swire pointed a finger at her. "And don't you start yapping!"

"Settle down, you two," Hoshiguma gave them both a firm bonk on the head, "No fighting until we figure out our next step."

The three were in the control room with Amiya and the Doctor as the battle went on outside Rhodes, each moment captured on the large screen before them. They could see Courier going toe-to-toe with the creatures, Haze flinging dark mist at the monsters, and Flamebringer's burning sword cleave through the opposition like a hot knife through butter. Arrows struck down any of the monsters aiming at the backs of the combatants, and occasionally, an explosion would wipe out a gathered group of enemies. The Doctor's choices were perfect as always; the team outside Rhodes Island was doing a fine job of countering the attack.

"What can we even do besides continue with our original plan?" Swire grumbled, "The only thing this changes is that we now know for certain that these monsters are hostile."

"And that we will need to dedicate operators to fighting off the monsters," Ch'en reminded, "Unless you think they'd kindly stop if you'd asked them, princess?"

"What did you call me, you-"

Hoshiguma sighed. "What did I just say?"

Swire growled, but both of them turned away from each other.

Amiya coughed to get their attention. "Miss Swire is correct. From a planning standpoint, the distribution of our forces will remain the same. The only difference is that we need to begin operations immediately - we can't afford to wait."

"Are you concerned that they may sap our fighting strength?" Ch'en raised an eyebrow, "We could easily rotate operators in order to deal with the pressure from the creatures."

"It's more than that," the Doctor answered, "Eyjafjalla and Earthspirit have already begun their investigation of the rock samples. They've already found that there are abnormally high amounts of various poisons in all the samples. Nothing grows here. Even if Rhodes is mostly self-sufficient in terms of food and water, we can't last forever if the only thing we can replenish are our power stores. We would run out of materials to repair any wear and tear Rhodes suffers eventually."

Ch'en frowned, but nevertheless acquiesced with a nod.

"Are we all on the same page, then?" Amiya's eyes wandered over the gathered people. At their nods, she continued, "In that case, the Doctor and I finished deciding who would participate in which projects. If you would all look over these files and give me your opinions..."

* * *

_Rhodes Island Files_

_Oripathy_

_Oripathy is a dangerous disease caused by over-exposure to Originium __(see Originium, pg. 3)__ or the entrance of large amounts of Originium into the body. Mortality rate: 100%. __Those infected by Oripathy are commonly referred to as the Infected. __All people contain trace amounts of Originium in their body, and there does not seem to be a universal threshold for when someone crosses the line and becomes Infected. It has been widely agreed that one becomes Infected roughly when the Originium in their body reaches a sufficient amount to be visible in body scans. There is no known cure for Oripathy._

_Oripathy causes Originium crystals to grow within a person's body, often subjecting them to pain and various disabilities. A patient in the early stages of Oripathy may show no visible outward symptoms, but imaging technology can still reveal the presence of Oripathy through the presence of dark shadows within the body. As Oripathy progresses, patients may show various symptoms depending on which areas of the body have been most severely infected. For instance, Oripathy in the brain may cause hallucinations and unstable personality, while Oripathy in the throat may hinder a person's ability to breathe and speak._

_Originium is spread through death.__ It is difficult for a living Infected to accidentally spread the disease, as although Infected often develop Orundum __(see Originium, pg. 3)__ lesions on their skin, the Originium is not of sufficient purity to cause Oripathy unless it makes direct contact with the mouth or bloodstream. __When an Infected dies, their body crystallizes into an impure form of Originium that is nevertheless capable of spreading the disease. Exposure to the corpses of the Infected may thus cause others to develop Oripathy. For this reason, the Infected are largely discriminated against as vectors for the lethal disease, forced into slums and refused from jobs and services. In Ursus, the Infected are even forced into labor camps. __To be Infected is to be fated for an early death, whether literal or social._

_It is possible to slow or halt the progression of Oripathy with appropriate care. However, such healthcare is rare, which, when combined with the tendency for the Infected to be fired and refused from jobs, makes it nearly impossible for most Infected to afford care. Rhodes Island is one of the few locations in Terra capable of providing treatment for Oripathy, and our system of allowing Infected to pay for treatment through means other than money allows even the poor to seek treatment._

_The only advantage Oripathy confers is the ability to use Arts (see Arts, pg. 5) without any external gear. It is common for Infected to be more skilled Casters than the uninfected, and many of the most powerful Casters are also severely infected. Whether it is because skilled Casters are often exposed to Originium and thus develop Oripathy or because Oripathy improves one's Arts is up to debate._

_Generally, the ability to use Arts without gear is considered not worth the discrimination and guaranteed death._


End file.
